Aeroplane.



J. VOLPE.

AEROBLANB. APPLICATION FILED MAR-17, 1911.

1,063,306, Patented June 3, 1913.

I 11 V011 tor; (56,571, V67 6 wwwim Atty @h l lllll,

JOSEPH VQLEE, OYE'HEVV E6113, 1?. Y.

snizoennun.

Specification of letters fetent.

.Peienierl June 3, fill Application filed Karen 17, 219131. serial 3:30. 525,074.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be-it known that I, JOSEPH VoLrn, u. resident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Aeroplanes, of which the following is e specification.

This invention relates to air-ships, particularly of the kind which are known as h eavier-th an-air H1 echin'es. I

'lhe object of the invention is to provide, first, e machineof light as well as stench construction, 3' secondly, e simplified num- 'ber, distribution; and arrangement of opei. ating parts therefor, severally designed and adapted to insure immediate response to. the touch of the aviator and combining to give him the fullest control. over the machine Reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in two sheets, for s. detailed scription of the invention.

In' the said drawings, Figure 1 is e, 'perspective view of a monoplane in which the preferred form of the invention is embodied.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side 'view,-pertly broken and partly in section, showing the propelling and steering apparatus, combined. in this invention. Fig. 3 shows a slightly modified form of the machine, in versieel longitudinal section. Fig. 4- is new similar to Fig. 2,With the modification pert-aining to Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a. partly-hroken per spective View, illustretin o. modified form of the combined prope ling e'fnd steering mechanism, Fig. 6 is n partial-plan or" the construction illustrated ir'nthe preceding ure. Fig". 7 is a detail View of part of the same mechanism.

Corresponding numerals of reference designate similar elements throughout the we rious figires.

1i represents thelwruck-hetl of thomuchine, which preferably is mounted on three Wheels, two forward and one at the rear, respectivelynumberecl-Q and 3. This had consists mainly of rods disposed-in narrow, elongate, quadrangular arrangement and firmly united by couplings afnd cross-braces, as best seen in Fig. 1. It carries 2. light, Winged, sumlerly-built superstructure 4E, intended to be covered With canvas or sai -cloth in the ordinary manner 1 (not shown).

w i A motor or engine 5, of any suileble type, is placed upon the bed 1m. or hear the for- Ward part thereof; and the evielors semi,

. 16, is located reerwerdly o1 the seine, conoscillatory cylindrical ,ii iniilurly, the

end substantially identical with that shown in Figs.

means and the motive power are all to be found ahead in full VlQW of. the eeronaut. The abovemenlioned, combined, propeller. and rudder 8 has a rearwardly-projecting shaft 9, which is rotated from the aforesaid forwardly-projected shaft 7 of the motor, to which it is coupled. by means of longilmdizillyslidehle, splined links 10 and universal joints l1, The sheik. 9 passes through an hearing 13,.ha-ving a spherical. portion 1%, lodged in a correspondinglyehaped sent 15, Within the upper end of a. slenderd 16, that rises from "the for ward end of the truck-lied. A stem 17 projects upwardly fromihe sphere 14, passing out through a flaring opening 18 in the top of the standard 16, and to this stem is fastened a handle 19, which extends back above the coupled shafts '3 and 9 zindthe motor, down to a convenient, point in front of the seat- 6. The lower end of the handle is bifurcated, es 20, 21, to enable the avidtor co grasp and manipulate it with either hand. it will he understood that, owingto its connection with the partly cylindrical and partly spherical bearing 01E thesheft 9, the said handle operates to swing the rudderpropellereasily and instantly from one position to another, as may be required, and iherehy insures perfect control over the increments of the sir-craft in all directions. connection between the ong ne s driving-shell. and the ruddered p ers driv n shaft 9 is such/shat ihe il -etunting meclieuisnri of the aeroplane remains operative under all conditions, the interrelut-ive adjustmeni oi the links and shaft ing being universal. v

The construction represented by Figs. 3

l. and 2, the chief difference oeingighst the mounting or standard 16 is exiendedhigher up in one case than in the other, and lhe'eleveted mounting requires that the shells 7 and 9 be placed oi different levels, with the intorcomieciing links on incline. The operation is the some .in

either case. The principal advantage of the higher standard is that it brings the central part of the rudder-propeller into the direct line of vision of the operator, seated at 6, and may facilitate the reading if an index or a compass is employed.

Fi s. 5., 6, and 7 show a form of bearing for t e shaft 9, which may be substituted .for and will answer practically thesame purpose as that hereinbefore described. The atter-named form of bearing, indicated by the numeral 22, is cruciform in design, and the transverse arms or members thereof are hung loosely upon pivot pins 23, that pr0-' ject inwardly from segmental or arc-she. ed shoes 24, which latter are'adapted to side back and forth 'in' suitable ways provided bearing in a vertical plane'upon the pivots 23 'and reciprocating the pivot-carrying shoes circularly in "a horizontal plane; The

handle 19, through its stem 17, is attached to and operates the cruciform bearing 22 in like manner as obtains with the cylindrospherical bearing 1314.

-What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States. is

1. An aeroplane includinga guiding structure, an aviators seat thereon, a bearing element. universally mounted at a point in advance of "the aviators seat, a propeller, a to longitudinal shaft carrying said propeller and journaled in the bearing element normally coincident with the longitudinalairis of the ghdmgstructure, a motor arranged at a point between the aviators seat and the bearing element, a transmission shaft com posed of slidably connected sections and universally jointed to the propeller shaft and motor shaft and a rigid controlling device directly fixed to said bearing element and extending longitudinally therefrom to a position in proximity to the aviators seat,

whereby said bearing rectly and positively adjusted.

2. An aeroplaneincludmg a gliding structure, an aviators seat thereon, a bearing .elee

element, maybe div mcnt universally mounted atja point in as:

'vance of the aviators seat, a propeller, a

longitudinal shaft carrying said propeller' and journaled in the bearing elementcd incident with'the longitudinal axis of :the

gliding structure, a motor arranged at a;

point between the aviators seat and the bearing element and having its shaft ar ranged in a plane below the normal'horizontal plane of the propeller shaft, a nor-e mally inclined transmissionshaft composed of slidably connected sections and univer sally jointed to the propeller shaft. and motor shaft and a rigid controlling device directly fixed to said bearing element and extending longitudinally therefrom to a positionl'.in proximity to the aviators seat, whereby said i bearing element may be directly and positively adjusted. v

3. An aeroplane including agliding-structure, an aviators seat mounted thereon, a spherical upon the gliding structure at apoint in advance of the aviators seat," a longitudinal propeller shaft journaled in and extending"- through said spherical element and normally arrangedhorizontally and coincident With,

the longitudinalraxis ofthe glidin struc-f end of ture, a propeller upon 'the'forwar' said shaft, a motor arranged at a point between the aviators seat and spherical ole ment, a transmission-shaftcomposed of slidably connected elements universally jointed to the motor shaft and rear end of the propeller shaft, and-a rigid controlling devicev element universally "supporter v directly fixed to said bearing element and extending longitudinally therefrom to a position in proximity to the aviators seat,

whereby said bearing element may be directly and positively adjusted.

Signed at New York city, int-he county of New York and State of New York, this 15th 1 I day of March, A. D. 1911.

JOSEPH VOL? [1a. 13.] Witnesses: g

A. H. STE. MARE, M. 'B. MnnEAN. 

